There was just a presence about Uncle Harrison. He gave off the impression that he was simultaneously a tough old bastard while also being a thoughtful and intelligent master of communication. It was interesting to watch him mold himself into whatever the other person needed him to be in order to get close to them. It wasn’t inauthentic either. Just another aspect of his own personality that he reserved for when he met people that brought it out of him.
I spent the day showing him around, meeting crew members, showing him the basics of how the business worked, and giving him an idea of exactly what his investment paid for. He kept his eyes open and asked questions that let me know he was paying attention, but at no time did I ever feel like I was defending the investment. He wanted me to know, through his words and actions and attitude, that he trusted me. He was, as he always was, just curious.
Curiosity was his primary trait. He was known for his insatiable curiosity. It was what led him to investing in the first place. He would become so enamored with learning about various kinds of businesses that he ended up picking up on which ones would be hot tickets when they went public and buying up large portions of stock. Then, he would sell them off when the company was stable and do it all over again. Very rarely did he ever take a bath on one. Usually, he just made extraordinary amounts of money.
Carter took him around for a bit, driving him to one of the sites we had acquired and showing him some of the newer expansions we were making. Then Deacon brought him into the office to go over finances. By the time the day ended, I felt like we had given him a thorough rundown of the company and what his investment was doing. He seemed rather happy about it.
“Well, I don’t know about you boys,” he said as five o’clock neared, “but I am downright famished. Is there a place where you would like to eat that serves a good beer around here? My treat.”
I looked over at Carter and Deacon, who grinned.
“Sergio’s,” they said together.
“Sergio’s it is, then,” he said. “Tell your partners they can come to if they’d like. The more the merrier.”
With that, Carter called Lauren, and Deacon called Rebecca, but neither seemed to want to go out. They had plans with each other for that evening, unbeknownst to their men. Apparently, the two of them and Harleigh were going to take the kids up to Dina’s and visit with Helen.
I piled into the truck with Uncle Harry and Lily, heading toward my place to drop the pup off while Deacon and Carter went to Sergio’s to get us a table. As we drove, Uncle Harrison’s face was beaming. He seemed like he was in a right damn good mood.
“Seems like you boys have things going pretty smoothly,” he said. “I thought if you needed any more seed money, I am thoroughly convinced your operation here will make it back in no time. You just let me know.”
“I appreciate that,” I said, smiling. “I really do. And I might take you up on it. But for right now, I don’t think we need it. Barring any major catastrophes like equipment going down or something like that, I think we’re going to be okay with the jobs we have.”
“I think so too,” he said.
“No offense,” I said.
“None taken, son.” He grinned. “I just wanted you to know that it was available. I’m going to back you and this business one hundred percent.”
“Thanks, Uncle Harry.”
“You’re welcome, Everett. Now, let’s get to dinner,” he said. “I’m starved.”
Dinner turned into beer at the bar next door. Sergio’s was unique for that, with a bar as an expansion to a somewhat fancy, authentic Italian restaurant. The bar was more of a classic sports bar place. It was pretty much the go-to place in town for people who wanted a more relaxed place to hang out but also wanted good food and alcohol. Especially after Dina’s stopped serving their beer menu a couple years back.
We took our desserts into the bar area and continued to chat and have a few drinks. Eventually, the girls ended up at the bar and collected Carter and Deacon, so they didn’t have to burden me for a ride. I had made myself the designated driver as I usually did for them. I preferred drinking at home or at bonfires where I didn’t need to worry if I needed to crash somewhere and sleep it off.
When Carter and Deacon were gone and it was just me and my uncle, I figured that I could spare the room for a beer or two, especially after all the heavy pasta. There was no way I was going to be anything but sober with all that in my stomach.